Today, the City of Toronto released its HousingTO 2022-2023 Update report highlighting progress made toward implementing the 10-Year HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan (HousingTO Plan).
The report focuses on the progress made across the HousingTO Plan’s key strategic priorities:
• Advancing a human rights-based approach to housing
• Increasing the supply of affordable and supportive homes
• Protecting the existing supply of homes
• Assisting renters
• Supporting climate resilience
• Enhancing cross-sector and intergovernmental partnerships
• Improving accountability and transparency
The report highlights the significant and tangible key actions taken in 2022 and up to June 2023 including the:
• Completion of 1,082 net new affordable and supportive homes for people experiencing or who are at risk of homelessness
• Approval of 3,340 net new affordable rental homes
• Allocation of more than 3,300 housing benefits through the Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit (COHB) program to help people maintain their homes
• Allocation of $46 million in funding through the Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition (MURA) program for non-profit organizations to acquire and permanently secure approximately 260 affordable rental homes
• Launch of new digital dashboards to increase transparency and accountability and to track the City’s progress towards advancing the HousingTO Plan on a public platform
The report also proposes to advance a major partnership initiative aimed at supporting the creation of new non-profit co-operative (co-op) homes while ensuring existing co-ops continue to be safe, secure and affordable.
Specifically, the City is proposing to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Co-op Housing Federation of Toronto (CHFT) and their new development arm, CHFT Development Society Inc. (CDSI), to preserve existing homes, identify opportunities to add net new homes and modernize the governance structures of co-ops. This MOU is a significant step in strengthening the City’s partnership with the co-op sector and increasing the City’s stock of permanent, affordable rent-geared-to-income homes.
Additionally, the report provides updates on the City’s ongoing work to improve residents’ access to affordable and rent-geared-to-income homes through program updates and new technology solutions. These efforts will also promote transparency, fairness, equity and efficiency.
Addressing Toronto’s complex housing challenges requires a whole-of-government and whole-of-community approach. Strong intergovernmental actions and partnerships are needed to address the housing crisis. Increasing the housing supply in Toronto requires new policies, programs and financial tools from all orders of government, as well as participation from the Indigenous, non-profit and private sectors. The City has made significant financial investments demonstrating its leadership and commitment to improving the housing situation in Toronto.
The HousingTO Plan calls on the federal, provincial and municipal governments to invest a combined $33.2 billion over 10 years with the following investment breakdown:
• City investment of $14.6 billion ($8 billion already committed)
• Federal request of $10 billion ($2.3 billion already committed)
• Provincial request of $8.6 billion ($1 billion already committed)
The HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan 2022-2023 Annual Progress Update report is available at: https://secure.toronto.ca/coun
More information about the City’s 2020-2030 HousingTO Action Plan is available on the City’s website: www.toronto.ca/community-peopl
The Housing Dashboards can be found on the City’s website: www.toronto.ca/city-government
Quotes:
“People in Toronto deserve to live in safe, secure and affordable housing. As a City, we will continue to do everything we can to address the housing crisis. The 2022-23 Progress Update on the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan reminds us that we can build more affordable homes when all orders of government work together.”
– Mayor Olivia Chow
“The 2022-23 Progress Update report signals to us that, while the City of Toronto has been able to advance many of its HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan goals, there is a lot more work to do to ensure Toronto is a more inclusive and equitable city where everyone has access to a safe and affordable home – work that should be led by more partnerships between the federal, provincial and City governments and significant new and enhanced investments.”
– Councillor Gord Perks (Parkdale-High Park), Chair of the Planning and Housing Committee
SOURCE City Of Toronto
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